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The Calm Before the Storm It had been a few days since Kimi had left Tsuyugakure behind, trailing Raido X to a still unspecified location. Not that she trusted him, but rather because he was her only lead to the mysterious Uchiha woman so far. Currently, they appeared to have already crossed the Land of Fire's borders. At a certain moment, Raido told her they would be camping for dinner, which shortly after setting camp, he told her he would be back in a moment. Thinking he would go hunting for food, Kimi offered to accompany him, to which he vehemently asked her to wait in camp. Kimi eventually complied, and let the man go on his own business. She sat down in camp for at least half an hour, always wary, with her Sharingan activated for better surveillance. A setting sun to his back smell of a campfire to his front and food in both his left and right hands. The Dark Slayer had returned from a successful hunt, hunting in such condition brought him to days long since passed. "Home sweet home, living among the wilderness like this is damn near nostalgic". Raido said inhaling the varying aromas of the wilderness around him. Each one inflitrating his nose each with a fond memory of a stained childhood that offered few moments of beauty. Hurring back to the makeshift camp he and the other uchiha female set Raido couldn't help but chuckle at her alert state of awareness. "I've heard of be aware of you surroundings but this takes the cake, Kimi you don't even look like you blinked once since I left, it is ok to blink you know". Raido shook his head inbetween his fleeting laughs. "I ain't the one to assume since you make an ass out yourself if your wrong, but It seems to me you aren't familiar with the living out on the wild side, the look in your eyes says it all". Raido said hauling the fish and various meat off in front of her to let her see the options at their disposal for dinner. Without a way of telling how long he was gone, he had only the fact the sun was setting to tell him he was gone for an extended period, and sure she would probably want an explanation. "Take a load off and relax, the real fun doesn't begin until the moon rises in the sky". Raido stated as he went to prepare a log and sit down on it opposite of Kimi. There eye's met and Raido could sense a small level of anxiety within her, having walked the paths of Arihants so long ago, dukkha sensory was now second nature. It was as natural as the five sense he was born with albeit heightened. "Not that I don't enjoy a good field trip with nature, what exactly are you hoping to confirm with meeting the woman". Raido forwarded another question to her looking to see if her answers or motives have changed during the walk. Kimi kept her crimson stare on Raido. It wasn't the first time she had a camping in the middle of the forest for sure, though likely not as experienced as Raido. Despite this, her very keen senses provided her a pretty good advantage in the wilderness, "...She promised to work with me, and according to you, told me an half-baked lie. Now, I want to know everything about her, with my own eyes..." Kimi finally lowered her eyes back to the bonfire, "In short, I want to know what she's really up to. I'll take the salmon." Kimi said, grabbing the fish shortly after and placing it on a stick over the fire. "Kimi, if you learn nothing else from hanging with me learn this. Always beleive half of what you hear, and all of what you can see and prove. Especially dealing with strangers. I'm sure im not number one on your trust list, but I have nothing to gain from lying to you. So take advice for whatever it's worth and use it. It would behoove you to heed it". Raido uttered passing the salmon as well as words of wisdom. Food for the stomach and food for the brain. "I just hope in this learn everything about her it doesn't turn out to be a battle, I would hate to have to clean up after both of you without eating breakfast first". Raido joked knowing good and well this meeting had the chance to turn for the worst. For now he would let his optimism get the best of him. "You think I don't know that already? About half-believing someone? I worked as a spy for Kumogakure for a couple years, I know a lie when I hear one. I chose to heed her mostly on a whim." Kimi spoke, quickly glancing towards Raido and returning her eyes to the bonfire afterwards, her Sharingan now deactivated. "It's not my first intention to fight her, but I won't hesitate if it comes to that. We'll see." "So you say, but I trust you do whatever it is you have always done. Everything as a way of showing itself so you're right we will see." Raido jocking repeated using the same exact same words as Kimi and then breaking them down each as if concurring with her statement. "Say it comes to that, how far are you prepared to go to obtain what you need. You seem like a capable fighter, key words, you seem. However this female isn't known for her diplomacy". Raido said egging the statement forward. "You seem like the determined type and I am the type who hates to watch hard work go down the drain." Raido said twisting his stick of salon witin the dancing flames. The mental timer in his head was keeping track of how much time ws needed before he could eat the fish. "...I don't have much to gain from fighting her, like I believe she doesn't in killing me. For her to lie to me, trying to have some kind of control over me, it's possible I'm more useful to her alive. She even gave me some of her own chakra." Kimi said, slightly raising her hand to look at it, "Even if it comes down to that, I assure I won't go down without a hell of a fight." Kimi suddenly clenched her hand, causing her Steel Claws to spring from her wrist. "She gave you her chakra??. Raido facial expression was nearly just as puzzled as the sound of his deep voice as it cracked under that question. She did more than just half believe someone she accepted chakra from them. "Well then guess that answer and settles that question, if im too nosey it's within your right to say so, but why did you accept chakra from her". Raido said regaining his natural poker face look. Between this new revelation and Kimi's claims about being a spy something wasn't adding up, that or maybe the idea of spy has changed since Raido grew up. "Because it's an advantage, and she offered it. Why so surprised?" Kimi said while swinging her blades at the fish's head and cutting it off, quickly glancing back to Raido shortly after. "Well I could tell you, but why ruin all the fun of what's store for us tomorrow. If it were me I wouldn't take anything from someone I don't know especially chakra which could be used against me later". Raido said inbetween bites as he devoured the fish that was finally fully cooked. "Think about it, she lied to you about the current state of events that which thanks to me you found were half truth's and then she gave you; a total and complete stranger her chakra. Anything seem off to you about that?. Raido questioned Kimi with an inquisitive tone to his voice. Expecting his highlighting the giving chakra part to ring a bell in her head. Kimi stared at a Raido for some time, which probably made him wonder if he had startled her somehow with this information. However, a little smirk made its way to Kimi's lips and a strand of her raven hair dropping to the middle of her face, "Eh... so you underestimate me afterall, huh?" The young Uchiha kept staring for a few more moments before finally proceeding to eat her roasted salmon. "Only thing I underestimate is how you have underesimated the situation. Its easy to defend from attacks on the outside one's that can not penetrate your defense. However when a attack manages to come from within how do you defend?" Raido said raising his eyebow slightly. As you know with enough practice some of you shinobi can control their chakra remotely. "With that in mind whose to say she she hasn't been casually monitering you, using this chakra she gave you as a way to keep you tethered to her and keep her eyes on you". Raido said jamming his stick into the ground after finishing the last bite of fish on it. There were a few more kabobs of fish dangling over the fire. "Situational Advantages are far more effective than people give it credit for but that doesn't matter because the goal isnt't to fight right"???. Raido explained shifting his tone from a quizzical one to one more of humor and laughter. "Ah lighten up im only kidding lets be optimists here even if something went wrong your a big girl you got this handled". Raido went on further with a more humorous tone inviting laughter back to his tone. Spitting out a small fishbone, Kimi stopped biting the fish for a moment to answer Raido's first statements before he could continue, "I'm fully aware of those risks, and I'm not concerned. I know how to defend myself from the 'attacks from within', and I have nothing to hide from her nor do I plan to hide anything at all." Kimi then proceeded to finish her salmon while Raido continued with the talk, after which she stuck her stick on the ground in the same manner as the older man and replied once more, "I said all I had to say. I'm going to rest now." Kimi then laid her back against a large tree, proceeding to stare at the moon for a while. "Hmmm I can smell the confidence just emiting from you and I like it. I didn't know you were so feisty Kimi. To think I thought you had a stick in the mud personality, you got some bite to your bark". Raido declared standing up as he stretched showcasing his large wingspan from shoulder to shoulder. "Guess you forgot what I said earlier. The real fun doesn't begin until the moon rises in the sky". Raido pointed up to the direction of the move as the sound of nature became more apparent among the solace of night. Sound travels further at night and each movement is amplified more, and the bushes not to far from there area we're rustling gently as if something was passing them by. The sound orginated not just in one area but around them. Something was closing in on them and was ready to make it's pounce on what it thought was weak prey. "When the day sleeps and the weary rest, the wild awakens, be vigilant and swift for the predator care little of your rest". Raido spoke in a calm and inviting voice. The hunt was to begin but only one group would live long enough to see the sunrise, the other group would only remember their last sunset. The raven-haired Uchiha slightly turned her head towards Raido, her position unchanging, "What? You're worried about wild animals? The bonfire will keep them at bay." She said, her voice stoic as usual. "Im gonna have to spell this out for you aren't I". Raido said taking a long pause before he turned his vision over to Kimi. "I said predator and prey, not anything about wild animals. Anyone can become the prey or be the predator... even you". Raido said turning toward the fire that was lit ablaze from their position and was preparing to blow it out. "You win I cut the bullshit out for the rest of the night and leave you be. "If you lose, I leave you here and you get nothing. Deal??" Raido said pretending to offering her the illusion of free choice, regardless of her decision. Raido was going to blow the touch out anyway. Kimi furrowed her brow, the hint of a frown showing on her usually expressionless face. However, as soon as Raido prepared to stomp out the bonfire, Kimi quickly rose from the tree and blew a large quantity of wind towards the bonfire, creating a large flame that would engulf Raido in mere moments. Regardless of the outcome, the fire would spread over to nearby foliage. Looking at the flame and already in motiong Raido didn't even need to waste any movement. Focusing on the flames Raido channeled his power through his body and instanty summoned a glowing cloak the eneloped his body engulfing him with it's bright orange embrace Having engaged his Lava Release Chakra Mode the lower level flames did little more than find themselves swallowed by a far more advanced form of itself. Rather than being upset nor angered. Raido stomped on what was left of the charred wood. "Now that's more like it Kimi, I knew you had a fiery side to you." Raido said as the animals ran for cover to avoid the burning foliage. "Well guess nobody wins so guess we keep things as they are then". Raido said as he leaned back against the tree, propping himself up right and resting carefully against it. Kimi stood in the same position, hand held near her mouth from the previous jutsu, a look of disbelief on her visage as Raido simply laid back on the tree like just herself moments before his... 'impulse', "...You've got to be kidding me..." She said as a sweat bead rolled down her face. She probably wouldn't fall asleep anytime soon. Reencounter The sun rays were starting to pierce through the trees as dawn had come upon the Land of Fire. The peeking rays started to disturb Kimi's sleep as she slowly started to open her eyes; she sat up from the tree she had been laying against and rubbed her eyes with her arm. She then noticed Raido was nowhere to be seen. Well, this was new. After all this time travelling together, even despite his somewhat sketchy character, Raido had always come to "greet" her in the morning. Even before Kimi could open her eyes, Raido would be laying against a surface or sitting at the window in case they spent the night on a inn, always with a playful smirk on his lips and the same question at the tip of his tongue regardless of the actual state of the weather 'Ready to continue our way on this lovely day?', ever since they left Tsuyugakure. Despite this unusual state of affairs, Kimi didn't know Raido's habits personally, and just assumed he had a reason not to be there this morning. Even so, she put herself on alert, as always. Kimi rose from her makeshift bed and went for a walk in the woods around camp. She began recollecting on her head everything that had happened to her so far ever since she met up with the hooded Uchiha woman. It all began when she used a strange jutsu to rid herself of the pursuing Kumo ANBU shinobi, after which she met the said Uchiha woman shortly after. As strange as it sounded, the woman told her the Akatsuki were already taking over the majority of the shinobi world with a technique named 'Infinite Tsukuyomi', and that only the Uchiha were immune to it. She then asked Kimi to regroup all the scattered Uchiha that survived or weren't caught in Itachi's massacre, so she could reform the Uchiha clan and deliver the shinobi world from the Akatsuki's warmongering ways, then imparting some of her chakra in order to 'keep in touch' with each other. After this, she left apparently in a hurry, without even giving her name. With these vague indications, Kimi set out to search for other survivor kinsmen, and managed to reach Raido Uchiha, or rather Raido X, through an odd job for an information broker. Raido, however at first confused with Kimi's words, told her a completely different story. He spoke of a Fourth Shinobi World War, whereas Kimi recalled there ever being only three world wars, and how it was connected with the Infinite Tsukuyomi and Madara Uchiha, one of Konoha's founders and possibly a common ancestor. Though some of this new information in fact surprised Kimi, it couldn't be taken as the truth either; she had just met Raido after all. However, he was her only lead to the woman, and didn't have much choice but to follow him when supposedly offered to take her to the mysterious lady. Right now, they had arrived in the Land of Fire. Kimi could only hope she would get to see again her soon, or that it wasn't some kind of trickery by part of Raido, the woman, or both. As Kimi descended further into the depths of the forest, the sound of metal chains seemingly rubbing against one another could be heard echoing throughout it. It was a rather painful screech; gruesome enough to scare away any wildlife that she would have otherwise come across. Finally --after a rather short period of time-- a figure became visible to the naked eye. Pumping its feet back and forth, the dark silhouette was seated atop a small chair connected to a large tree branch by metal chains and wires alike. Upon coming closer, the being became all the more distinguishable; draped in a dark, navy blue cloak, its face was concealed by a hood, without exposing so much as a hint of its bare flesh through any secret openings, including the ankles and even hands, that would otherwise have been left unscathed. It appeared to be a rather secretive individual, whomever it may have been. The creeks of the tree branch accompanied by the rust of the chains was the only prominent sound made by the forest, until the dark figure chose to spoke, in a surprisingly feministic voice. "So we meet again," It began, taking noticeably long pauses between each of its statements. The swinging seat began to slow down, suggesting the cloaked entity was coming to a sudden halt with Kimi's sudden arrival. Residing within the shade of a large tree, the being was still rather hard to see physically, though her chakra signature was present with a strong amplitude that had been known to put down several unprepared foes in the past through mere exertion. "I do hope you are doing well?" As much of anything else, the eccentric display by the figure's part didn't seem to have any kind of impact on Kimi. She slowly came to a stop, recognizing the voice immediately, as if the woman's chakra signature pulsating on her own heart wasn't telling enough. She fiercely narrowed her eyes, but kept a calm composure, "You..." Kimi paused, her voice showing a hint of anger on her usual cool monotone, "What's your game? Why did you lie to me? I told you to be truthful with me if we were going to be partners!" Kimi crossed her arms. A thought crossed her mind as to where Raido's current whereabouts could be, but now she was finally in the presence of the woman she had been chasing after these last couple months, Raido became a complete secondary concern, if a concern at all. Just in case, she remained alert, as always. "Partners?" The word felt awkward coming from Sayuri's soft lips. It suggested a union --an equal. As far as she was concerned, she had no equal; it was with this such morality that Sayuri loomed the depths of the darkness. Had this feeble girl lost her mind? For a moment, there was yet another silence. It was a fitting example, allowing for Sayuri to recollect her thoughts. In the very same instance, the swing came to an effect stop and the only thing that could be heard within the darkness was the joint breathing of the two Uchiha kinsmen. Until, laughter suddenly broke apart both of Sayuri's lips. Her white teeth seemingly shined within the core of the pitch black forest as she sought control over herself. However yet, as maniacal of an action as it may have been, the laugh exemplified that of a nurturing mother. It was an odd combination indeed. Pitted with the embodiment of hatred, this woman laughed as softly as a newly birthed dandelion. "What a joke! I know no such equal," Sayuri continued, as her being slowly lifted itself from the swing and made the effort to take some few steps away from it, though still lied beneath the shade of the tree. Her feelings of remorse for Kimi were quite conventional, in that she saw herself within the feeble child. The sense of nostalgia was all too familiar; for Sayuri to truly consider Kimi an ally -- and thereafter acknowledge her existence with reality -- she would first have to prove herself. Combat skills was not what Sayuri desired, but rather an innocent heart --one that had never once seen corruption and therefore could have been swayed easily in either which way. She would seek an identity during this encounter. "I am Kami!" Sayuri suddenly exclaimed, her voice crafting into an audible echo that boomed throughout the entirety of the dark forest. The entire scenario made for quite the effect, establishing her role as a villain before Kimi. As the words left Sayuri's lips, the morning sun appeared from behind the trees and shined a ominous ray of light down upon her like a spotlight, as if illuminating a divine being. Her eyes --her murderous red eyes, were at last visible, their potency giving them a life of their own. A chakra surge from Sayuri caused a powerful gust of wind to shake the entire forest and forcing Kimi to cover herself from it, as her long raven hair and travel coat fluttered back "Ugh..." Kimi activated her Sharingan as precaution to Kami's aggressive reactions, "Will you cut the grandiose bullcrap and answer me? Or do you really want me to force it out of you?" Kimi said as she lowered her arms now that the wind had died down. Her tone was now more angered than before, with a clear scowl on her visage. "Force it out of me? Very well, we will do just that, then." Sayuri was quite amused with the girl's behavior as of late. Quite clearly she was agitated beyond belief; she had somehow managed to decipher her lies from their initial meeting, and Sayuri was growing fond of her very presence. A little test would be suitable for a time such as this, though Kimi's actions would heavily influence Sayuri's every move. She was an untamed beast; this battle would dictate the sway of Kimi's morals. At the end of this scuffle, Sayuri would have either gained a trustworthy ally, or a new pair of eyes. Concentrating chakra in the heel of her left foot, Sayuri stomped her left foot against the terrain, bringing forth a miniature earthquake through sheer strength alone. Immediately, a crater formed beneath her being, and several boulders all around the area were lifted from their homes. This was done to throw Kimi off balance for the time being as she herself charged forward, allowing very little time, if at all, for any unprecedented reactions. Charging forward, Sayuri looked to deliver a clean blow with her left forearm to the girl's stomach, with enough power to send her flying backwards. The shaking of the earth by Kami's stomp caused its desired effect and threw Kimi off balance, "Grk!" With little time to respond to Kami's following rush, all Kimi could do was cross her arms in front of her stomach to block the woman's blow as soon as she perceived it. While this would prevent much of the damage, the sheer force of the blow would send Kimi flying back, knocking several trees down and raising a dust cloud with the impact. Albeit a bit sore on her back from this, Kimi made the seal and hoped the commotion caused would allow her to remain out of sight as she created a shadow clone for diversion. She wouldn't gain anything from killing this woman, who possibly held knowledge invaluable to her; her plan was essentially to somehow hold down this woman long enough to extract as much intel as possible. How this intel would change the current state of events would remain to be seen. Sayuri's dark silhouette could be seen through the cloud of dust as it began to disperse. Accompanied by the tapping of her sandals, the pneumatic brunette admired how quickly she had managed to reshape the terrain. Already, several trees had been torn and separated from their roots, not to mention the fact that the very earth itself was tainted with various craters and cracks. It was a pleasant scene, something that brought a smile upon the woman's face. "What's the matter?" Sayuri announced through the dust, as she inched closer to Kimi's shadow clone. "Weren't you going to 'force' something out of me?" Kimi threw her cloak at Kami from the dust cloud and quickly made her way to the treetops while her clone rushed Kami. Kimi knew she would outright lose if she tried to fight the woman in a taijutsu contest. While not impossible in reality, Kimi couldn't take many more hits with that abnormal strength, and considering the woman also had a Sharingan, landing a solid hit on her wouldn't be easy. As such, Kimi had to rely on distraction with her jutsu and clones to try and gain an upper hand in this fight. In last case, Kimi would have to resort to her Mangekyō or even her kekkei tōta. Sayuri took her stance as she examined the clone rushing towards her. Kneading chakra into her being, she emitted a subtle shockwave through the pores of her body without making so much as a physical gesture. The shockwave would have spread out and covered a large amount of distance fairly quickly; it was meant truly to knock Kimi off of her feet as a setup for another move, however, seeing as though the one before Sayuri now was but a clone, it would most likely not be able to sustain the blunt force of the attack and perish. Meanwhile, as Kami used her shockwave against the clone, the real Kimi jumped from a tree branch over Kami while performing hand seals, "Fire Release: Phoenix Sage Fire Meteor Shower!" Kimi shouted in her head while expelling a large mass of fire from her mouth, which spread into several smaller fireballs that began to rain down on the older Uchiha woman. The Uchiha Talon consecutively landed on another tree branch and vanished into the forest again. Meanwhile, the clone didn't have much choice but to take the hit, which caused it to vanish in white smoke. The Sharingan essentially allowed its wielder to see in "slow motion", enabling Sayuri to see the clone disperse in real time. The chakra of the clone was then transferred back to the original Kimi; this happened each and every time a shadow clone dispersed. In fact, the seventh Hokage had even taken to fashioning his training sense after the mechanic. With her extraordinary sensory capabilities --and the fact that her Sharingan was active-- Sayuri literally saw the chakra from the clone climb up into the sky, suggesting that the real Kimi had shown herself. Looking up with a quick reflex, Sayuri was met with a rain of fireballs --quite the pleasant surprise. Kneading the energies in her being yet again, this time, Sayuri called upon her metallic powers; as a few of the fireballs came raining down on the ground --crashing into the earth as they did-- Sayuri created a hardened cocoon of refined steel around herself, which proved able enough to protect her from the attack as a whole. However, she remained inside even after it had come to an abrupt end, realizing Kimi's chakra signature had grown distant. She was not going to play her games; running after her would have been quite disgraceful as she was now. Instead, she would wait patiently in her sheltered state and force Kimi to return to the battlefield. While hidden from Kami's line of sight, Kimi noticed she wasn't being followed by the other Uchiha, her keen senses at least granting her that much. She jumped from the tree branch onto the ground, looking towards the orange hue coming from the fiery battlefield, "Hmph... I don't have anything to gain in prolonging this battle. Might as well go straight for the prize." Kimi thought to herself as she created yet another shadow clone and headed back. Kimi observed as the flames spread around Kami's metallic cocoon, she possibly wouldn't last long inside with the quickly rising temperature. To speed up the process, Kimi paired up with her clone from tree branches overlooking the battlefield and both began performing hand seals, "Dual-Element Art: Great Fire Hurricane Technique!", once again shouting mentally as each respectively exhaled fire and wind chakra at the same time to form a giant fiery hurricane surrounding the cocoon, which would surely fry Kami if she didn't do anything about it. Kimi and her clone retreated to the forest again to cover themselves from the hurricane. The sudden spike in temperature was not lost on Sayuri. A clever little trick, Kimi trying to cook her within her own defense. Sayuri had only been in her metal cocoon for mere seconds and she could already feel sweat seeping through the pores on her skin, causing her attire to stick uncomfortably to her *lavish* frame. But of course, this was nothing to worry about. Sayuri was too smart to be caught in a predicament such as this. Rearing both her fists up over her head, nearly coming into contact with the scolding hot metal dome, Sayuri slammed both hands into the ground, simultaneously perforating her spherical defense. The incredible impact of Sayuri's fists on the earth once again shuck the land and displaced several large sections of the ground, but in addition the impact sent the pieces of Sayuri's metal dome flying in all directions. The bullet like pieces of metal forced the flames away from Sayuri as they scattered in every direction, blasting through foliage and wildlife alike. Kimi nearly lost her balance from the small earthquake caused by Kami's slamming of her fists, and watched a bit surprised at how the impact itself disintegrated her fire hurricane, "She dispersed the hurricane with her strength alone? She's really something... Ghg!!" Kimi had to react quickly and dodge the incoming projectiles; she turned around the tree while a couple shards hit the bark, causing the tree to catch on fire; Kimi extended her right blades to deflect an incoming shard as she turned the corner, jumping back into the forest. Kimi's clone deflected a couple shards as she jumped straight at Kami amidst the black smoke of the forest, as the whole area was now engulfed in a wild fire. Sayuri remained stationary standing in a small island of upturned earth amongst the flames and scorches earth. Though the heat was still intense, it was no longer unbearable, especially since Sayuri was now free to breath in fresh air. Kimi was certainly skilled, being able to think quickly and use her opponent's own defense against them, but even so Sayuri still felt very comfortable. After all, this battle was still on her own terms. Whether Kimi lived or died, she still benefited, while Kimi only benefited if Sayuri was alive. With all the cards so evidently in her corner, Sayuri couldn't help but smirk under her mask. The incoming clone was not lost on Sayuri, who's eyes snapped to the incoming attacker. The clone approached from an upward angle, talons reared back in preparation for a powerful thrusting strike. That plan was quickly disbanded with the manifestation of a metal pole that appeared of Sayuri's hand. The talons scraped against Sayuri's new metal tool, not even managing to come close to her body. With the initial attack blocked, Sayuri swung the staff around with a single hand, attempting a counter strike to the clone's neck. Kimi's clone managed to block the incoming swing with her right claws and grabbing it with her left hand, pushing it down while spinning around in anticipation for landing a roundhouse kick on Kami. Meanwhile, the real Kimi awaited her turn from within the forest and smoke to surprise-attack Kami from behind. However, it was getting noticeably harder to breathe with all this smoke... The clone's roundhouse kick was easily blocked by Sayuri using her forearm to guard, Sayuri seeming almost casual while doing so. Once again calling upon her immense strength, Sayuri lifted the metal staff from the ground, hoisting both it and Kimi's clone above her head. Unable to gain any sort of traction with her talons, the clone quickly began awkwardly sliding (arguably falling) down the staff and closing the short distance between herself and Sayuri. The clone still attempted to missile kick Sayuri, but the older Uchiha easily dodged it by simply tilting her head. Sayuri then immediately shot her free hand towards the clone, carrying a blue sphere of condensed chakra into the clone's abdomen, sending it spiraling against a tree. In a white puff of smoke the clone vanished, leaving Sayuri once again alone in her safe haven amongst the flames. "I hope your finally done playing around." Sayuri called out to Kimi. "Unless of course you've been fighting seriously all this time, in which case I'm afraid I have wasted a lot of effort." From the dark smoke a silhouette with gleaming crimson eyes suddenly appeared behind Kami, two streams of bluish light surged alongside the scarlet eyes; Kimi readied herself to critically hit Kami, hoping it would put her out of combat. A quick diversion followed by an even quicker follow up attack. Kimi's use of the clone was expert if not flawless. If not for her divine perceptual prowess, Sayuri may have missed the quick movement that placed Kimi at her rear, but of course such carelessness was beneath her. Sayuri made a slow turn to face Kimi as she attacked, disappearing in a spiraling ripple just as Kimi's talons were about to reach her. Kami disappeared right before Kimi's eyes as her electrified claws were about to make contact, small droplets of sweat gleaming in the air as Kimi's eyes widened with surprise at the sudden situation. As the young Uchiha set her feet on the ground from the leap, she quickly readied herself for whatever was to come next. Fiery hues and dark smoke now filled the whole forest, and was nowhere in sight. While stunned by her moment of confusion, Kimi was now left open to attack. Sayuri's only difficulty would be picking which type of attack to use against the younger Uchiha. I could simply strike her down with my bare hands. But if I do so I may be tempted to use more strength and necessary, so it would be best to avoid that method. I could always send a few simple fire based attacks her way, but judging by the terrain I'd say fire has already been used plenty in this encounter. Perhaps something that will make her squirm a bit. Finally settling on a method of attack, Sayuri let out a ominous laugh, unheard from her hiding spot. As Kimi searched frantically for her opponent, she suddenly felt as if someone had grabbed the bottoms of her feet, despite the fact she was standing firmly on the scorched ground. By the time Kimi had even looked down, her feet had already been encased in a mass of metal that cemented her to where she stood. Kimi gasped as the metal covered her feet and practically nailed her to the ground, "Shoot!" The young Uchiha began lashing at the metal with her claws, forcing Kami to let go off her and impeding her from continuing to create metal. Seeing that her regular claws weren't making a difference, Kimi flowed lightning chakra onto her claws and restarted lunging at her metal-covered feet, this time managing to chip away some of the metal, but still not fast enough to free herself before Kami's next move. As such, Kimi began performing hand-seals and started preparing chakra in anticipation for this. Unfortunately for Kimi, Sayuri's next attack was already underway when she began forming her hand seals. It was indeed smart to utilize Lightning Release against the metal, but Sayuri was no longer near the underground pillar of metal she had formed to ensure Kimi would remain stationary. With Kimi's movement restricted, Sayuri was now free to do as she pleased. Sayuri had the perfect attack in mind. Something to challenge the younger Uchiha, but not something she was incapable of escaping. There was of course the slightest chance Kimi would be unable to escape, in which case this attack would also leave Kimi's precious eyes undamaged for future harvesting. On either side of the stationary Kimi, large pieces of metal resembling two large hands emerged from the soil. Scraping their way across the ground, the two giant metal hands wrapped around Kimi, leaving her head poking out while encasing her body. Over the chillingly powerful sound of the metal hand moving along the earth, Kimi could hear eerie laughter as Sayuri manifested before her. Kimi shrieked in pain as the two giant metal hands began crushing her body torturously in between intervals. At this rate, her bones would be nothing but dust before she could even try to force herself out of the metallic deathtrap. In a situation this dire, an instinct began tugging inside her head, at her brain, making its way through her optic nerves and finally into her eyes. Having her eyelids clenched due to the immense pain, Kimi's eyes suddenly shot open and the tomoe in her Sharingan began shifting into what became an X-shaped pattern. Just as suddenly as this happened, a sharp pain stung her right eye and Kimi felt a tear of warm blood trickle down her cheek, and then she noticed; the pressure from Kami's giant metallic hands had stopped, but it also didn't return to continue grinding her body. Kimi quickly looked around, and noticed the flickering of the flames plaguing the forest had stopped and was completely stationary. Kami also seemed completely unmoving, like a statue, and Kimi felt her body become heavy. At this turn of events, Kimi concluded she had just used one of her Mangekyō Sharingan techniques. Feeling the strain of the technique increasing with each passing second, Kimi wasted no more time and finished prepping her chakra for Energy Release, the luminous chakra extending from all her claws and breaking the metal with ease, giving Kimi enough room to spin around and destroy the remaining alloy. Using whatever chakra she had left, Kimi flowed lightning chakra all over her body and flashed right in front of Kami before the effect could end. Sayuri had encountered many blindingly fast ninja in her lifetime. She had seen ninja who could open the Inner Eight Gates, she had seen users of the Flying Thunder God technique and she herself possessed the infamous Kamui. All could produce near instantaneous movements and transitions, but when Kimi's foot slammed into the mask over her face, she was still completely taken off guard by what she assumed to be unfathomable speed. Not a millisecond before, Sayuri had been closing her hands together, manipulating the large metal hands to mimic her actual movements. Kimi had been trapped, the air slowly being driven from her lungs. Sayuri had expected Kimi to escape, but to do so in such a manner that left even the almighty Sayuri Uchiha defenseless against the counter attack was well beyond what had been expected. Knocked form her feet, Sayuri was knocked back by the fierce impact of the kick, barely managing to maneuver herself to allow for a vertical landing before sliding back into the base of a large tree. Glaring menacingly at the obviously worn Kimi, Sayuri noticed several small pieces of white scattered between the two Uchiha. Bringing her hand to her mask, Sayuri instead felt her own soft flesh. A piece of the mask had broken off around Sayuri's left eye, the mask continuing the crumble around that area. Within a few moments a large crack formed in the mask, causing almost the entire mask to fall down from Sayuri's face, landing at her feet and shattering into several more pieces. Now freed from the mask, Sayuri's long brown hair floated down into its natural position, covering the top of her shoulders and the back of her neck. Though every strand of Sayuri's hair was usually quite cooperative, being stuffed into the mask caused some strands to disobey, falling in front of the single remaining section of the mask that covered Sayuri's right orbital and cheek bones. "What hell was that?" Sayuri growled at Kimi, the arrogance that had been so evident in her voice before now replaced with a festering rage. Right after delivering the blow to Kami, Kimi fell on the ground, sweat dripping from her face onto the scorched earth and heavy breaths escaping from her mouth. The pain in her right eye forced her to close it shut for now, the blood still clearly dripping from it. Her chakra reserves were on their last legs, clearly using the Mangekyō and her kekkei tōta at the same time was just too taxing. Kimi began to get herself up, albeit slowly, but in time to see Kami's mask falling off her face and hearing her question. "Why should I tell you?" Kimi's voice was still fierce, but a hint of exhaustion could be picked up, "If you've had enough, I'd like to hear the truth from you first." The younger Uchiha was now back on her own two feet, but her stance clearly indicated some exhaustion as well. Kimi's exhaustion was apparent, even if Sayuri didn't possess such veteran instincts and powerful eyes. Sayuri could smell the blood in the water, her rage prompting her to prey upon the wounded animal. In a flash, Sayuri was upon Kimi, a hand wrapped around the younger Uchiha's neck and violently yanking her off the ground. "Do you know how much work goes into just one of those masks?!" Sayuri spoke, venom in her tone. "They aren't something you pick up at a damn store!" Sayuri's grip tightened on Kimi's throat, preventing the girl from even yelling out in pain. "I'm beginning to question if you're worth the effort, you brat." Before Kimi could make use of her claws, the weapon was stripped from her hand by an invisible force and tossed into a nearby tree. The claws on Kimi's feet were stripped form her as well, the force of the weapons being ripped away from her nearly dislocating her ankles. "I'm beginning to think the only thing your good for are your pretty little eyes." bringing her hand back, Sayuri formed a fist. Though her eyes were beginning to water heavily, from both the intense pain and lack of humidity in the hot air, Kimi could still make out the spear like gauntlet that formed over Sayuri's hand. "Unless you have any last words..." Sayuri smirked at her joke, though there was no humor in her eyes. "... we're through here." A blur suddenly took root between and near the two combatant having taken ground in-between the space among them. Shinra Tensei!!!!. Raido appeared among them suddenly his visage hidden behind his shades as he channeled his power through the realm of Gods the Deva Path. The sudden voice that accompanied his sudden appearance blast both females apart forcing Sayuri to relinquish her grip around the younger Uchiha's throat. The force of the blast was enough to push them back to their respective sides. "I hope you ladies don't mind me cutting in on this dance, but I figured it was time to change the song and tune". Raido said mocking a situation that clearly had no humor or fun left in it. His appearance and after his sudden disappearance was all to well timed in this case. Among the two women right now he appeared as neither friend nor foe, but a mediator ready to calm the sides. Despite having dug her spiked metal fist into the rough terrain to halt her movements, Raido's Shinra Tensei technique sent her sliding almost a full twenty meters back, leaving a small trench carved into the upturned soil. Sayuri could see that Kimi, who had not had the good fortune of a vertical base at the time of Raido's attack, was sent much farther. True to form, Raido had made quite the entrance. Having been overly fixated on her confrontation with Kimi, Sayuri hadn't noticed his presence until it was too late. She wasn't thrilled by the interruption by any means, but regardless Raido was no fool. He wouldn't have stepped in without a good reason. "Must you be so forceful Raido?" Sayuri asked as she began brushing dirt of her robe. "Forceful is such a strong word, I prefer the term "aggressively motivated timeout". Raido said sneering behind the dark tinted frames of his shades. The dust finally settling in the aftermath of his blast. Standing in the middle Raido looked and switched his head at both Kimi and Sayuri his neck pivoting as he gazed at both women. "Usually I make it my business to stay out of the business of others, even yours Sayuri, but I couldn't help but notice the rough housing got maybe a tad too serious, so I had to bring out the agressive timeout. Clearly I can't trust you ladies to simply talk and not wanna throw hands on each other, sooo think of me as the verbal referee here. Now lets pick up where you two left off using your words, not hands and jutsu. The next person to make a threatening move on the other is treating me to breakfast and I haven't eaten since the day before". Raido said looking to see if either of the females disagreed with his terms. The momentary silence that filled the air was the best answer he heard all day. Course he would still love to be treated to that breakfast, but he would also prefer this conversation carried on in the manner relating to the least amount of incidents and work. Kimi coughed heavily as she slowly got up from the ground while Raido and Sayuri had a brief exchange of words. However, much of the air had been filled with carbon dioxide-filled smoke from the burning forest; Kimi tried to breath in, but only filled her lungs with the toxic air, causing her vision to start blurring heavily until her consciousness started to slowly fade away. Kimi was almost completely up, barely holding on her trembling legs before fatigue, dehydration and the polluted air took their toll on the young Uchiha. A very blurred image of the two older Uchiha staring her way was the last thing she saw before collapsing face first on the scorched forest ground. "Looks like I may have pushed her a little hard." Sayuri inquired. "I guess it's only fair I be the one to carry her." Casually walking over to Kimi, Sayuri picked up the unconscious girl one handed by the back of her shirt. Sayuri was making no effort to make Kimi's journey comfortable and was making no effort to hide it form Raido. Raising Kimi up, Sayuri held her directly in front of her own face, peering into the closed eyes of the younger Uchiha. "So young, yet your eyes are so powerful even time itself bends to their will. The world is going to change my young kin, and you are going to play your part." "A wise man once said leave it better than you found it, cleaning your own messes is important". Raido said as he fixed his shades on his face, pushin them gently back on the bridge area of his nose. "Sooooooo does this mean I won't get breakfast from either of your?, I mean to not eat and enjoy the succulent meals the next village over has to offer would be rude of us. You're paying for Kimi's meal too, think of it as a peace offering". Raido said extending his index finger to Sayuri, making it profoundly clear he would not be covering the bill of the younger Uchiha when she awakens. Revelations With a heavy blur, Kimi's eyes slowly started to open themselves, letting a dim light reach them. Kimi moved her head to both her sides, so she could get a better understanding of her surroundings; she was lying on a bed, in a darkened room, the only light coming from an oil lamp on a nearby bedside table, which also held a small pestle and mortar with residues of herbs. Kimi slowly rose up and noticed whatever small injuries she had sustained in her battle with Sayuri had been treated and bandaged. For a moment, Kimi remained still, using her senses to try and detect movement nearby. A scuff somewhere in the darkness drew Kimi's attention towards the corner of the room. The vague outline of a human figure slowly manifested as Kimi stared into the black. After a few moments the figure moved closer to the dim lantern light, revealing a black kimono. "Raido must have hit you harder than I initially thought." Sayuri spoke as the orange glow began weakly illuminating her face. "You were out for an entire day. I hope you're feeling better. I've treated your wounds as you may have noticed, no thanks necessary." Kimi's expression became one of anger momentarily, then she quickly turned her head to look down at her lap and visibly clenched the bed sheets in disappointment. She lost. She couldn't prove her worth as she should have. How could she achieve her goals, if she wasn't strong enough to push her will through? However, there was nothing she could do about that right now. She would darn well work become stronger, but right now other matters required her attention; she had been spared, and there should be a reason for it. While keeping her stare on her lap, Kimi asked, "Why... Why do you lie to keep me under your thumb and then spare me when I come for you? Is it because I'm an Uchiha too? Or are you planning something else? Somehow, I doubt it is the former." Sayuri could barely conceal her smirk as she spoke. "Your certainly a perceptive young kunoichi. I won't lie, I didn't spare you out of the kindness of my heart, nor simply because we are of the same clan. But your Uchiha blood play a factor. Those eyes of yours posses abilities unheard of, even for an Uchiha. It would certainly be a shame to let them go to waste." "So, that's your game? You want to use me as a weapon?" While Kimi's face was concealed by her long raven hair, her fists visibly clenched harder on the bed sheets. "My dear girl, you misunderstand. You mustn't think in such simple terms, the world is not black and white. I do not wish to use you like a mere tool that can be disposed of. Whether or not you realize it child, the shinobi world is not the paradise that it appears to be. Though it has not been dominated by conflict since the conclusion of the Forth Great War, it is far form a utopia. In order for a true golden age to be ushered in, change must take place. If I simply needed your eyes Kimi, I would have taken them from you by force. Surely I proved I am capable of such. I am giving you a chance, to be a part of history. To take part in a change for the better." This time, Kimi had heard enough. She wanted the truth, all of it. Kimi quickly shot her head towards Sayuri and managed to establish eye contact with her senior, her Sharingan changing shapes to the crossed pattern, and blood poured out of her left eye. In the meantime, Sayuri's eyes changed to match the Mangekyō Sharingan of Kimi for the duration of the technique, and all she could witness was the room become visibly darker with only a silhouette of Kimi and her glowing crimson eyes in front of her, an occasional pattern equal to Kimi's Mangekyō flashing in the darkness. Sayuri could almost feel a sense of being watched from all directions, denying her any privacy whatsoever. While inside Sayuri's mind, Kimi glimpsed most of the older Uchiha's life in just mere seconds, each mission she took, each relationship and bond she developed, each experience, both good and bad, and all of the pain she endured. The darkness within Sayuri was great, causing Kimi to become visibly agitated with what she witnessed, but there was also a faint light, hope that had the potential to eradicate the festering darkness. Kimi finally came to understand Sayuri's true motives, and felt that they indeed fought for the same cause. Once the technique ended, Sayuri's perception of the room of and senses returned to normal, and Kimi had her back against the wall while hugging her legs, sitting on the bed visibly shaken. Sayuri braced herself against the stone wall as her mind tried to comprehend what has just happened. Her mind has been infiltrated by an outside force, every single one of her memories scanned and observed, as if her entire life had been made into a movie for Kimi to watch as she pleased. It was a fascinating and frightening at the same time. Sayuri couldn't help but recall the legendary mind reading capabilities of the Yamanaka clan, but even that paled in comparison to Kimi's unique ability. "So that was the power of your eyes, truly remarkable." Sayuri stated, a rare moment of admiration on her part. "I hope now you understand that I am not your enemy." Kimi lifted her head towards Sayuri, but her eye stung sharply shortly after, forcing her to hiss and take a hand to it, "S-So... you figured it out, huh? You're impressive yourself, I'll give you that..." The horrid experiences of Sayuri still lingered on in Kimi's head, but she managed to keep her composure this time, "I... I'll work with you. But don't think we'll be best buddies after this! I'm... I'm going to get stronger, with or without your help! And I'll surpass you! I'll show the world what the Uchiha can do!" Kimi shouted, and yet she seemed exhausted, but she had made her mind. Sayuri couldn't help but smile at the younger Uchiha, partaially in admiration of her determination, and partially because the idea of Kimi surpassing the legendary Sayuri seemed naive. "Friends we perhaps will never be young Kimi, but I am happy to call you my ally none the less." Reaching into her cleavage, Sayuri produced a small white cloth and casually strolled over to Kimi's bedside. "It would probably be best for your to rest your eyes child. I know all too well the toll the Mangekyō Sharingan takes on one's body." Extending a hand, Sayuri offered the white cloth to Kimi. "I'd wipe off that blood if I were you. I'd hate to have to wash your sheets already." Kimi stared at Sayuri for a little while with her eyebrows furrowed, then grudgingly snatched the handkerchief from Sayuri's hand, placing it over her eye. "Now rest up child. It won't be long now until you get to meet your sister pupil. We want to make a good first impression, don't we?" "'' 'Sister pupil'? ''" Kimi thought to herself, narrowing her right eye in wonder. Category:Shards Category:DazzlingEmerald Category:SixpathsofSamoa